£be &uilfortrian 4 Editor in Chief Adviser Joan Malloch Jeff Jeske Associate Editor Karen Rowan News (vail Kasun Perspectives Ashley Clifton Features Cristina Haworth Sports Kiley Holder Will Cooper Photography Ben Cadbury Elaine Brigham Business, Advertising Brian Burton Personnel Brian Sugioka Subscriptions/Circulations Reagan Hopkins Speak your mind Ashley Clifton Perspectives Editor Flipping through the last pages of summer enjoyment raiding, 1 came to these words: "It makes me angry. It makes me want to write," And I pondered what makes me want to write. Reading of both the cultural wealth and plights of the people it discussed, the article itself made me want to write. It oc curred to me then that in iny lackadaisical eves of summer, I failed to record the thoughts which ususally move me to write. As I thought of my own neglect, my nerves began to shake a little. As Perspectives editor of the upcoming year, will 1 be moved enough, get angry enough to write the sort of ar ticles in which other Guilford college students will take inter est? Will I discuss important is sues ami problems, and will 1 offer a forum for real improve ment and informing ideas? That is, after all, my job now. I also wondered if people will actually write for me. What if, this year, everyone returned to Guilford content with the world - either ignorant or uncaring of the problems bound to arise in any institution of higher learn ing. Or, even worse, what if ev ery problem was cleared up over the summer? Needless to say, J was reassured upon returning to Guilford that there are plenty of bugs, gripes and raised eyebrows on this campus to relieve my anxiety. "Hey," ! reminded 'This is Guiiford.' There's something about wing ing a lot of people with vastly different views and opinions from many different places and packing them into a single in stitution that usually results in debate, or at least creates a fortmiforit. In fact, when a friend of mine apphed to Guilford, he posed a Ashley Clifton question to the interviewer: "I know Guilford has a reputa tion for being a liberal campus, but are there conservative people here as well to provide a healthy balance?" in consideration of that ques tion, I'm not sure an exact bal ance exists, but I do know that opposing opinions can be found on almost any issue at GuiifiorcL Thai variety in thought is one reason I came to Guilford -—to learn, to be pushed to think, to consider different viewpoints other than my own. My job as Perspectives editor is to do for the readers of The Guiifordian what Guilford does for me. Thai is to give readers and writers the oppor tunity to present fresh ideas, opinions, or perspectives, as weli as the opportunity to agree or disagree with the opinions of others presented in this sec tion. At the very least, readers will have the opportunity to consider alternative viewpoints, whether they choose to respond to them or not. The decision to open up i? close oneself off from the issues and ideas presented m The Guiifordian this year is ulti mately left up to the reader. However, this iv my message tor this issue and tor this yean speak your mind, tell us the stuff we should know, and be your own critic while offering your story. To each his own. Itatfpecttoe* Opinions expressed in editorials and letters to the editor do not necessarily reflect the views of the staff and editorial board. The editors reserve the right to edit all submissions for length, style, and taste. The Guilfordian encourages submissions. Typed articles and letters are due by 6:00 pm Monday. For more information on The Guilfordian write: P.O. Box 17717 Guilford College, Greensboro, NC 27410. Rogers welcomes students Photo by Ehttne Brighaw Charlotte Straney Special to The Guilfordian Qualities of intellect, human val ues, and the enjoyment of life these are the three main themes Bill Rogers explored as he ad dressed all incoming students on August 20 at the opening convo cation. This year, for the first time, the convocation included not only first-year students entering directly out of high school and transfers, but also new continuing education students. After welcoming the new mem bers of the Guilford community and sharing with them a sense of the college's 156-year history, Rogers highlighted some of the intellectual and social values he felt important to this place. "First, we hope you will come to enjoy the serious and fulfilling qualities of the life of the mind. Even beyond the specific content of the courses and extracurricular experiences at the college, we know you will come to value the excitement of ideas and to experi ence the skill in using ideas as we address the pressing social, politi cal and economic problems as leaders in an interdependent world. Those qualities of mind include critical and analytic thinking, the capacity for constructive and cre ative integration of ideas and meaningful solutions of problems, and the development of conscience in addressing the moral dilemmas that we will face. College is not just about ana lyzing ideas and taking arguments apart but also constructing them. It is also about building a life and a world that is worthy of our fin est effort. It is not just the accu mulation of knowledge and the skill in gathering appropriate in formation, but it is about using knowledge in a wise way for the well-being of humankind. Inert ideas and facts are never enough what is called for is focused discernment in the wise use of rich and complex ideas, tested through A very special thanks to our return ing staff member, Josh Palmer, for all his help on this issue. To all of our readers, we invite you to appear in this box by contributing to the creation of The Guilfordian. ' IP wmiZZ .. . ,5. #/// Rogers the thought and research disci plines of our various fields and applied in ways that are both just and productive. "Guilford invites you to deepen your understanding of values both personal and social. Values are also undergirded by philo sophical and religious conviction about the highest good. Some of these value issues will be experi enced within the next days and weeks of our life together. They are directly related to our sense of what is most important. For instance, you undoubtedly are valuing a new sense of free dom freedom from family, from past traditions, from dependence on others who set priorities and time tables for your life. But in cel ebrating freedom and indepen dence, it is important not to slip into what psychologists call "counterdependence" simply the unconsciously driven tendency to do just the opposite of what we may have been told was right or good in the past in order to defi antly assert our freedom. Freedom involves the sorting and choosing in which we may sometimes cast aside perspectives that were shallow and inappropri ate but other times reaffirm in our own terms the importance of things that were held before us in the past as worthy of our devotion. This is a time of valuing thanks giving, of thanking parents and friends and of saying goodbyes but also a time of valuing new SuauSt 27, 1903 friendships and new intimacy, of saying hello and of discovering the lifelong wonder of meaningful friendships. It is a time when we can enjoy the values of patience in working on details, sometimes simply slog ging through with the effort that must be undertaken to achieve our ends, and at the same time the value of a readiness for greatness —a readiness that sees the broad vision of our human community and human history and sees ways in which our own part may be in spired by new ideas and new op portunity. We will learn the value of re specting the integrity of our own deepest identity as well as the value of respecting others in the integrity of their diversity, learn ing values from them that expand our world. It will be a time of knowing the value of self-fulfiil ment and, at the same time, the value of a generosity of spirit which reaches out to others with compassion, kindness and genuine caring. "Third, I know that this will be a place where you have fun. Guilford is not marked by the hu morless intensity of some selective colleges, but rather it is a place where we balance hard work and play, serious deliberation and sheer exuberance. Guilford is a place we know you will come to enjoy im mensely while at the same time cherishing it as a center for learn ing in the development of lifelong skills. Photo by Ben Cadbury

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